From September 30, 2026 to January 25, 2027, The Orangerie Museum in Paris is celebrating the centenary of Claude Monet’s death with a temporary exhibition dedicated to his relationship with time. Titled «Monet, painting time», It invites you to discover how the master of Impressionism sought throughout his career to capture the variations of light, the passage of hours and the transformations of the landscape.
Nearly forty paintings allow us to rediscover his work, from his early impressionist works to the famous Nymphéas.
Dates, place and times of the Monet exhibition: painting the time
- Dates: from September 30, 2026 to January 25, 2027.
- Location: Orangerie Museum, Tuileries Garden, Place de la Concorde (on the Seine side), 75001 Paris.
- Opening hours: 9:00 a.m. to 6:00 p.m., from Wednesday to Monday.
- Weekly closure: on Tuesday.
- Nocturne: Every Friday until 9pm during the exhibition, with the last entry at 8:15pm.
Located in the heart of Paris, the Orangerie Museum also houses Monet’s large compositions from the Nymphéas series in two oval rooms specially designed to showcase them. You can thus extend your exploration of the temporary exhibition by viewing these monumental works.
Monet, painting time: an exhibition to rediscover the master of Impressionism
How to represent a moment that disappears immediately? This question permeates much of Claude Monet’s work.
At the end of the 19th century, the painter became interested in the constant changes in light and atmosphere. He painted the same landscape at different times of day, observed the effects of the seasons, and worked on the variations in color that transform our perception of a place.
The exhibition «Monet, painting time» It traces this artistic research through several periods of his career. It brings together paintings from, among others, the collections of the Musée d’Orsay and the Musée Marmottan Monet, as well as from French and international collections.
You will find the great series that marked his work: the Meules, the Peupliers, the Cathedrals of Rouen and the Matinées sur la Seine.
Before these paintings, take the time to observe the differences. A facade changes color according to the time of day, a landscape disappears in the mist, shadows change the shapes… Monet makes time itself a veritable subject for painting.
The course also addresses the modernity of the 19th century, an era marked by the development of the railway and the acceleration of travel. This new perception of time fueled the research of the Impressionists.
From great impressionist series to the Nymphéas
The exhibition places particular emphasis on the Nymphéas, to which Monet devoted the last decades of his life.
In Giverny, his garden and pond become a veritable artistic laboratory. The painter observes the reflections of the sky on the water, the changes in light, and the almost imperceptible movements of the vegetation.
Gradually, the traditional landmarks of the landscape fade away. The eye loses itself amidst the water, the colors, and the reflections.
This evolution takes on a whole new dimension at the Musée de l’Orangerie, where the large decorations of the Nymphéas surround the visitor. A wonderful opportunity to understand how Monet moved from painting a moment to a work that seems to suspend time.
Why choose a guided tour of the Monet exhibition, Painting Time?
A guided tour with a professional guide-lecturer allows you to better understand Monet's research and to look at his paintings in a different way.
Why does Monet repeat the same motif so often? How does he manage to represent the variations in light? And what distinguishes his early Impressionist works from the Nymphéas of his later life?
Your guide answers these questions by drawing directly from the paintings on display. He or she helps you identify the details, compare the compositions, and understand the evolution of the painter’s techniques.
The visit also allows us to place Monet in his time, to discover the circumstances surrounding the creation of his major series, and to better grasp the links between his work and the transformations of society in the 19th century.
Whether you already know the Impressionists well or are discovering Monet for the first time, the explanations of a professional make the works more accessible and the exchanges more lively.
With Guides Tourisme Services, take advantage of the expertise of a professional guide-speaker to discover the exhibition «Monet, Painting Time» at the Orangerie Museum. A beautiful way to enrich your visit and to take a new look at one of the greatest French painters.